


Undoing

by Astris_C



Category: Sapphire and Steel
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-24
Updated: 2016-11-23
Packaged: 2018-09-01 21:01:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8637898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Astris_C/pseuds/Astris_C
Summary: Some things have been removed from Time. Sapphire... no, Jet and Steel have been assigned.





	1. Chapter 1

A woman stood a few metres before him. A different woman. Slightly shorter, but with a more distinct figure. Her hair was jet black, held together in a bun, and she was clad in a sleek black gown that matched her watchful eyes.

Jet.

It was long since he had met her, and he wished that it could have been longer still. But there they were now, face to face, locked in an exchange of gazes. He had been dreading this very moment.

"What are you doing here, Jet?" Steel said cautiously. She smiled at him with amusement.

"I have been assigned."

"With me?"

"With you."

Steel gave her a sideways glance, obviously uncomfortable.

"Why?"

"Why what?

"Why have you been assigned? Where is Sapphire?"

"Sapphire? She's been reassigned, with Copper," Jet said matter-of-factly.

"Why?" he repeated.

"Well, I don't know. You don't expect Them to tell me, do you?"

Steel could not accept the new arrangement. Sapphire was the perfect business associate, and he was so used to always being assigned with her, that he could not imagine working with anyone else without a good reason. Least expectedly, Jet. They last worked together ages ago. But the Authority had decided, and so he had realised, that they were incompatible. Thus, they had never been assigned together again, and for the better.

Until now.

They watched each other for another minute as Steel regarded his new partner. Jet clearly loved Steel, and Steel had loved her. But their feelings had gotten in the way of their professionality and their goal. Although he no longer harboured such feelings for her, he knew it would be difficult to forget them. Whatever the case, he had to do his best to keep their past behind him if anything was to be accomplished. Having kept that in mind, he finally reverted his gaze to their surroundings.

It was late in the evening, and the sun had just disappeared behind the horizon. They were standing in the middle of a lane between two rows of terrace houses. There was no one out and about, only indistinct chatter could be heard from inside the buildings. Steel decided not to be the first to show his cards. "What information were you given?"

"The irregularity is located at house 15B. Someone or something has been removed from Time. Maybe both."

"That is all?"

"I wish it isn't."

Good. She had been given no more privileged information then his own. "And our job would be to... to bring back that someone or something, from whatever had removed them..." He stopped when he realized that Jet was smiling.

"What is it?"

"Nothing," she shook her head. "I just can't wait to show you my new ability. I can undo events in Time."

Steel raised his eyebrows. "You mean, take time back?"

"No, not in that sense. That's Sapphire's territory. Mine is much more limited. I can replay recent events and pick out the ones to undo. But only one event at a time, and very minor ones."

"I was not made aware of this."

Jet sneered. "That's because you hardly keep in touch with anyone." She teleported to his immediate back and tenderly caressed his shoulders. "Not even me, anymore."

Steel glared at her uncomfortably, and she let go. "Do you want a live demonstration?" she offered.

"No."

"Oh, come on, Steel."

Steel shot her another glare, which had no effect on her whatsoever. They continued down the lane, when a teenage boy sprinted across their path. He wore a blue cap, white shirt and black jeans, and seemed as if he was anxious to catch a bus. There was a middle aged woman standing on the pavement opposite him. She was dressed in long floral robes and was holding a map. She called out for the boy to stop, and said to him in a thick accent, "I'm not from around here, could you show me the way to Bushby Drive?"

Despite looking frenzied and exhausted, the boy nodded and replied her.

Jet suddenly held out five fingers, making a 'stop' hand signal. The boy and woman froze in their positions.

[Undo event where boy meets woman, at seven-forteen PM] Jet thought, only for Steel to hear. The world faded out, and faded into clarity again within seconds. Steel watched in amazement as the same teenaged boy sprinted past them for the second time. The woman was standing at the same spot, analysing her map, but did not call upon the boy for directions this time round. The boy continued down the pavement, running.

Steel stared after him in awe. He turned to Jet, and to his surprise, found her pale and slightly breathless.

"Jet?"

"I'm fine," she answered, the colour quickly returning to her face.

"Whatever you have done certainly drained your energy. That power must used to the minimum," Steel said sternly.

Jet nodded, then her lips formed a smile.

"But surely that was a commendable demonstration."

"Indeed."

The duo finally arrived at the gates of 15B. The house turned out to be the biggest of them all, and looked just like a mansion. It seemed ordinary enough from the outside, the well-tended garden and freshly polished windows confirmed its recent inhabitance. Steel rang the doorbell, but there came no answer.

"Is anyone inside?" Steel asked Jet.

"I don't know that any more than you do ," Jet gave him a puzzled look. It was then he remembered that she did not possess probing abilities similar to Sapphire's. He was certainly going to miss those.

Steel palmed the bolt of the front door, unlocked its inner mechanism with a flick of the wrist, and they stepped inside. The interior was huge, kept clean and tidy, and was decorated with soft furnishings. Several photographs were placed at the display table. They took some time to study them, most of which were of a young couple.

"They're possibly in their late teens or early twenties. There are no pictures of their parents, or any other family members," Jet observed. "Strange for only two people to be living in a house this large."

"And yet they look too young to be married," Steel said as he held up a framed photo of the couple kissing each other.

"That shouldn't be a reason not to live together," Jet remarked, moving on down the hallway. Steel set the picture back on the table and caught up with her.

[Let's split up, shall we? You check the other side] Jet sent him telepathically.

[No. We should stick together for now, split up later, ] he sent back. They made a thorough exploration of the kitchen, which had nothing extraordinary, then entered the study. The bubblegum pink colour scheme indicated that it belonged to the girl. "Look out for any old objects," Steel reminded her.

Jet flipped through documents on the shelf, while Steel examined the items on the desk. He came across a big checkered notebook and on the first page read "Diary". He read the first entry, which was dated a year ago, aloud.

"I've just moved in with Jonah. It feels good to be here. It's only been the first day and I don't want to go back. Ever. His parents don't know, of course. No one does. It had better stay that way."

Steel flipped to the last entry, which was dated just a day before, and droned on in an uninterested manner.

"I know it. What I've been dreading is about to happen. They are coming to send me back. I'm going to take Jonah with me. I love him so much, and I'm not leaving him. He is meant for me, and no matter what we have to be together."

He flipped through the pages carelessly, commenting, "New house, new inhabitants... nothing old, nothing sinister in particular... Nothing but a love lovesick couple."

Jet listened with amusement at his comment. "But a secretive lovesick couple that has disappeared?"

"We don't know they're the ones who disappeared yet," Steel said cautiously. He headed out of the room, and Jet followed.

After covering the first floor, they made their way up the stairs. They checked the bedrooms, one by one, but there was nothing much to see in them as most of them were empty.

"Whatever it is had better show itself," Steel muttered as he peered into a bathroom. "It would make this job a lot easier."

Jet stopped abruptly, and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Look, Steel." He turned to look in the direction she was facing.

There was a giant hole in the wall of the master bedroom!

Immediately, they motioned towards the hole, but were careful not to pass through it. Going straight into investigation mode, Steel asked, "When was this made?"

"Why do you keep forgetting, Steel? I don't know!" Jet exclaimed lightly.

Steel realised his mistake again, but shrugged it off. "The edges look clean. Too clean. This section of the wall could not have been removed physically..." he deduced as he stroked the smooth edges of the hole. "It's almost as if... as if it was never built. Never there..."

He stepped through the hole carefully and paced as he scanned the bedroom. Jet watched him adoringly. She was fond of the way he paced whenever he was in the middle of some incredible thought process.

Struck by a realisation, Steel stopped short in his tracks. "Like it had never existed! It's been removed from Time!" He stepped out of the bedroom again, and told Jet, "The only question is how."

Jet smiled. "And I might just be able to work that out. But I need time."

Steel made his way down the corridor as he replied her, "Take all the time in the world. I'll be downstairs." He then switched to telepathic communication, [ Don't undo anything without my order.]

Jet saw him disappear down the stairs, and frowned.

[Steel.]

Steel heard Jet calling him back upstairs. He returned to the hole in the wall where Jet was standing, and stared at her blankly.

[Do you not trust me?] she suddenly suggested.

[In what way?]

Jet thought for a moment. [The things you tell me, it's almost as if I've never operated before.]

Steel disliked having to deal with personal matters while on assignments. But as this assignment was an exception, he pardoned her and sought to clear things up.

[It's true that you have not operated with me in a long time. But I trust you completely. Why should you think otherwise?]

[I don't know. Maybe because I'm not Sapphire?]

At the mention of Sapphire, he decided to end the conversation immediately.

[Unfamiliar, yes. Uncomfortable, maybe. But untrusting, no. Now get on with what you have to do.]


	2. Chapter 2

Night had fallen and there was no light source other than the moon, at her location. Sapphire scanned her surroundings. She was at the bottom of a grassy slope, and ahead of her was nothing but trees. The sound of moving traffic could be heard, but she decided not to go up to the streets just yet. She wandered slowly through the trees, appreciating the peaceful sound of chirping crickets. After a minute or two of walking, she came across an open grass area with a small pond. Squatting by it was a teenage boy.

With a blue cap, white shirt, and black jeans.

"Jonah, I need to talk to you about something. Something important," an adolescent woman said as she sat down on the bed of her master bedroom. Light shone through from behind the pastel shade curtains. It appeared to be day again. Jet stood in a corner of the room, unseen and watching.

A boy walked in through the door. The same boy at the pond. The same boy who had run past Jet on the lane.

"What, Amy?"

Amy motioned for him to sit down next to her, and he did so.

"You are going to find it hard to believe," said Amy, her manner austere.

"I will believe you. Why wouldn't I?" Jonah said candidly. Amy sensed his earnestness and began.

"Two nights ago, I had a dream. It was no ordinary dream, Jonah. I dreamt that people will be coming to take me away from you."

"That sounds terrible. But it is only a dream."

"That's what you think. But it isn't." Amy took a deep breath, then continued, "It is a foresight. A prediction. The dream will come true, unless it is stopped."

"Hold on, Amy. Don't tell me you're getting involved in those superstitions!"

"I didn't expect you to believe me so quickly, but will you please listen."

"Yes Amy."

"I have been able to do such predictions for a long time. In fact, I've always been able to do them. I'm sure you have noticed it sometimes, like how I'm able to know the weather, and such."

"Come to think of it, I do remember some instances..."

"So the dream I had last night is bound to come true. I will be taken away! It must be stopped!" she exclaimed, her panic rising. Jonah was still skeptical, but decided to talk it through gently.

"Amy, who are those people coming to take you away from me? And why?"

Amy sighed deeply. "You see these people... aren't exactly people. They are a kind of police force from another dimension. They're obsessed with having order in the universe, they return things to where they come from. You see..."

"You mean you don't... come from here? Then where?"

"I wouldn't say that I am exactly a person, either. I come from... somewhere else."

"What! Then who are you?" Jonah stood up abruptly.

Amy was close to tears. "I may not be human, but does it matter? I am still Amy, and I am still your girlfriend. I love you, Jonah. I'm sure you love me too, and will not want anyone or anything to separate us, am I right? You once told me you would do anything to protect me. Will you do anything to prevent me from being taken away from you?"

Jonah was absolutely dumbfounded, but managed a reply. "An... Anything. I will..."

Amy stood up and held him by the shoulders. "Then look me in the eye, Jonah, and concentrate on nothing but my eyes."

Jonah's face was wrinkled in confusion and pale with fear. "F...f... fine, but what are you doing?"

Amy's eyes began to glow a deeper green than their original shade. "Stay very still. I am going to remove both of us from Time."

Jonah was too dazed to think quickly, but when he finally worked out what Amy had just said, he gasped and yanked himself out of her grip. There was a loud zap, a blinding light, and a section of a wall of the room within Amy's line of vision disappeared. The maid, who had been sweeping the floor behind that wall, disappeared along with it. When Jonah turned to where Amy was standing, he realised that she had vanished as well.

He let out a cry of shock, before darting out of the room as fast as his legs could carry him.

The room suddenly blacked out. There was a click and the table lamp turned on. Jet collapsed onto the bed, panting desperately. She waited a few minutes to recover before calling for her partner.

[Steel!]

[What's wrong?]

Her partner was by her side in less than a second. Jet looked up at him.

"I know what caused the hole in the wall."

"Yes?"

"The girl living in this house. She isn't actually a girl." Jet stood up from the bed, and began to circle the room. "She isn't an entity, either. She's somewhere in between, quite similar to us."

Steel furrowed his eyebrows. "Where does she come from?"

"I don't think she comes from anywhere. She's a bit like a nomad, but I can't be sure."

"What did she do?"

"She made a prediction about us coming to send her back. She told the boy about it, and tried to remove him from Time. That boy is the very same boy we saw outside on the lane just now. He escaped at the last moment, causing the wall she was facing to disappear instead, together with their maid, behind it." Jet walked around gesturing as she explained.

"And they detected it and sent us here."

"Why, yes."

"A causal loop."

"Yes, I'm afraid."

"Is she malevolent?"

Jet shook her head. "Hardly. She was deeply in love with the boy, and likewise was he with her."

"Then why would she want to remove him from existence?"

"Why?" Jet chuckled, wondering how clueless he could be sometimes. "So they can be together of course."

"Well, I've not learned any of all that from her diary. She disguises information about her origins exceptionally well." Steel rested his hand on the bed frame and thought for a moment.

"We have to undo this... this disappearance of the wall and the maid. Remove this... removal."

"I can't undo an event that big. Not directly." Jet quickly replied.

"Indirectly?"

"Perhaps..." Jet pondered for a while, then shot Steel a look of excitement. "Yes, perhaps I can!"

Steel went straight for it.

"Do it."

Jet closed her eyes. Suddenly, the lamp on the table went out. Light shone through the curtains once again...

"Jonah, I need to talk to you about something. Something important," Amy's voice called urgently.

In walked Jonah, right toward the position where Steel was standing. Steel backed away before the boy could collide into him.

"What, Amy?"

"Two nights ago, I had a dream. It was no ordinary dream, Jonah. I dreamt that people will be coming to take me away from you."

"That sounds terrible. But it is only a dream."

"That's what you think. But it isn't. It is a foresight. A prediction. The dream will come true, unless it is stopped."

Jet made a "stop" hand signal, and the couple froze. She thought aloud, [Undo event where Amy tells Jonah about the dream, five O five PM.]

The surroundings faded white and faded in again, and the scene was reset.

"What, Amy?"

"People will be coming to take me away from you."

"What are you talking about? What people?"

"These people... aren't exactly people. They are a kind of police force from another dimension. They're obsessed with having order in the universe, they return things to where they come from. You see..."

"You mean you don't... come from here? Then where?"

"I wouldn't say that I am exactly a person, either. I come from... somewhere else."

"What! Then who are you?"

"I may not be human, but does it matter? I am still Amy, and I am still your girlfriend. I love you, Jonah. I'm sure you-"

Frustrated, Jet made a dismissive gesture with her hands, and the scene cleared. She fell to the floor, panting, as darkness fell upon the room again.

"It's repeating," she gasped. "I undid the wrong event."

"Well then, just undo another event," he answered peevishly.

"I can't. Only one at a time, remember?"

Steel had to suppress a groan. This was like training Sapphire all over again. As he waited for Jet's recovery, he wondered about why he had been assigned with her in the first place. Was Sapphire faulty? That couldn't be. If that was the case, They would most probably inform him. But he couldn't be sure. They seldom informed him about anything.

Jet slowly stood up from the floor, smirking.

"Just in case you are wondering, Steel, I'm not any less unyielding than you are."

She ignored the glare she was returned and closed her eyes once more.

/

"Troubled, are you?" a gentle voice asked.

Jonah turned around and his eyes widened, because standing before him was the most beautiful lady he had ever seen. Her clothes were all blue with a sweet cutting, complete with knee-length blue boots and sparkling blue eyes.

"Well, yes, how do you know that? Who are you?"

The lady smiled. "We will be getting to that in a minute. My name is Sapphire."

Jonah was too mesmerized to be perplexed. He held out a hand to her. "Nice to meet you, I'm Jonah."

Now that was a first, Sapphire thought. She took his hand and asked while spot-analysing him, "Why are you troubled?"

Jonah laughed and shook his head. "You'll probably not believe me."

"You'd be surprised," Sapphire grinned.

"Alright, I'll go straight into it. A wall, a maid, and a girlfriend of mine disappeared. They vanished, just like that."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that. No, well... It's complicated."

Having completed the analysis, Sapphire let go of his hand. This was the boy all right. At his silence, she prompted him, "Do go on."

"Amy... I've known her for about a year... She's the loveliest girl you could ever have. I live with her, in a house just a few streets away. Nobody knows about us. I haven't told anyone, and we haven't had any further plans yet, I'm happy with just the way we are. But just today, she told me about something... Something very strange."

"Yes?"

"She told me that she had a dream, that people were coming to take her away from me, people from some other dimension. She said she didn't come from here, and that she wasn't a human. I couldn't really understand what she said."

"And then?"

"She told me to look into her eyes, and that she was going to remove me from time. I freaked out and moved out of the way. Lights zapped out from her eyes and hit the wall and the maid. Then they all just disappeared. I don't know how else to put this, it all sounds crazy. I've been roaming about the streets this whole evening, not knowing what to do. I've considered calling the police, but forget it. They won't be able to believe something like this, let alone solve it."

"That is very wise of you."

"Thanks, but I'm not sure you believe me either."

Sapphire's genuine smile never faltered. "Would you like me to show you something?"

"What?"

She turned to face the pond.


	3. Chapter 3

[Undo event where Amy tells Jonah of his removal from Time, five O seven PM.] Jet commanded.

Amy held Jonah by the shoulders. "Then look me in the eye, Jonah, and concentrate on nothing but my eyes."

"F...f... fine, but what are you doing?"

"Stay very still." Amy instructed him as her eyes glowed green. Jonah watched in bewilderment, but as he was unaware of his predicament, he did not move.

There was a flash of light again, but this time it directly hit Jonah. The couple flickered with bright green sparks, before dematerialising from the room.

The scene ended, and Jet slumped over, feeling exhausted but satisfied. "That wasn't too difficult," she laughed. She looked up at Steel, who somehow did not look at all satisfied.

"What are you talking about?" he barked.

"What? It's finished, isn't it?" she said, puzzled.

"No it isn't!"

"But I undid the event where the wall and the maid were removed. Indirectly. Didn't I?

"But that isn't solving the problem!" Steel walked over to the table lamp and switched it on again, then walked back to Jet.

"Our job is to handle irregularities, am I right?

"Yes."

"Which includes disappearances."

"Yes."

"Including human disappearances."

"Yes!"

"But in what you have done, instead of the wall and the maid, the boy Jonah has disappeared from Time!"

"Isn't that the desired outcome?"

"For the girl! But not for the boy, not for us, and not for Them!" Steel chided.

Jet frowned and stared down at the floor. She could not let herself fail so easily. Especially not on such a rare assignment with Steel. "Whatever I try to undo, either the wall gets hit, or the boy. Something has to disappear," she thought aloud.

"Why don't you undo the conversation in the first place?"

"That's too big an event!" Jet cried. "In this case I can only undo small parts of speech. But as I said, something just has to disappear in the end!"

The two ruminated in silence. Jet thought hard to find a loophole. Somehow, she felt the need to prove herself to Steel. He had to know that she could do this, that she would not fail him. Her own words echoed in her mind, over and over again.

Something just has to disappear in the end... Something just has to disappear in the end...

And suddenly she had it. It was the most sinister idea, but it was all she had.

"I know what to do," she said firmly, standing up from the floor.

"What is it?"

"You shall see," she said confidently.

"Tell me what it is, Jet." Steel demanded.

Jet teleported behind Steel, who stiffened as she caressed his shoulders again. "You told me that you trusted me, completely, didn't you?" she smiled mischievously.

"Up till this point in time, yes," Steel said flatly.

"Well then, that's too bad. You do trust me, don't you, Steel? That I would complete your assignment, just like you wanted."

"I do have a higher authority than you, Jet."

"Oh? Then you will not be disappointed, Steel. Trust me. I can do this." Jet smoothed his suit for the last time and motioned away from him. Steel eyed her suspiciously. There was nothing else he could do but watch her now, as he had no other ideas himself.

Jet closed her eyes, and the scene reset again...

Sapphire concentrated hard on the tranquil surface of the pond, her eyes glowing bright blue. [Come to us, Amy. Speak to us. Come.] she chanted telepathically. Nothing visible happened to the water. At least not to Jonah. Once she had finished, her eyes stopped glowing, and she turned to him.

"Do you miss her, Jonah?" Sapphire asked.

"You mean Amy?"

"Yes."

"What are you talking about? Of course I do, very much!"

"What if you had a chance to speak to her?"

"I'm... sorry?"

"Speak to her," she repeated. "Would you like that?"

"Yes!"

"Then look at the surface of the water. Think about her. Think of her appearance, her voice, her face."

"This sounds ridiculous," Jonah remarked, staring blindly at the pond.

"Concentrate," Sapphire instructed. Jonah sighed and tried at it. He thought about Amy's pale complexion, her sweet red lips, her high-pitched voice and her lime green eyes. All of a sudden, ripples began to form in the water. Jonah watched in amazement as they swirled, more and more violently. Without warning, a jet of water from the pond splashed onto his face. Jonah let out a yelp, then brushed off the water with his hand and looked back at the pond.

Amy's face was there, staring back at him!

"Amy! What are you doing in the pond!"

"What pond?" Amy looked at him blankly.

"I'm looking at a reflection, your reflection, on the surface of a pond!"

Amy smiled in realisation. "Oh, you must have found a medium to communicate with me. But how did you, anyway?"

Jonah turned to Sapphire, and moved aside for her to speak to Amy.

"My name is Sapphire," she began, "I come from-"

"Wait! I know you!" Amy exclaimed. " And I don't wish to speak to you!" Ripples started to form again, and Amy's reflection faded.

"No, Amy! Come back!" Jonah called out to her desperately. "She's trying to help us! Or at least I think she is..."

Amy returned immediately. "Help us? She's one of those people who want to send me away!"

Jonah looked at Sapphire in surprise. "So you're the police woman from the other dimension? You did this to her?"

"Yes, in a way. And no, she did this to herself."

Jonah looked at the reflection, then back at Sapphire, then back at the reflection. "Can one of you please tell me what is happening?"

"Allow me to explain," Sapphire offered. "Amy does not belong on Earth. She is another sort of creature, from another dimension. She has predicted my arrival, along with some others, and tried to escape from Time with you. However, she accidentally removed your wall and your maid with her instead. It is my job to put things back in place."

"And how are you supposed to do that?" Jonah asked skeptically.

"Amy, you do have the power to bring back the wall, and the maid, don't you?" said Sapphire.

"I do, but I don't see any reason to do so," she replied stubbornly. Sapphire smiled a warm smile.

"I shall provide you with a reason."


	4. Chapter 4

"You once told me you would do anything to protect me. Will you do anything to prevent me from being taken away from you?"

"An... Anything. I will..."

"Then look me in the eye, Jonah, and concentrate on nothing but my eyes."

"F...f... fine, but what are you doing?"

"Stay very still. I am going to remove both of us from Time."

Jonah gasped and yanked himself out of her grip. At the very last second, Jet ran into Amy's line of vision. The green light shot her instead, and she and Amy zapped away into oblivion.

The scene ended. In the darkness, Steel scrambled for the table lamp switch. When the light came on, he saw that the wall of the room was whole again. The maid was back. Wait, he had to confirm that. He walked out of the master bedroom through the door, and there was the maid, standing behind the wall. She was petite in stature, wore an apron, and was holding a broomstick.

"What's just happened? Who are you? I can't seem to remember!" she exclaimed.

"I just saved your life. Now go home. It's not safe here." Steel demanded. The maid nodded timidly and without a second thought, scurried down the stairs.

It wasn't until he heard the front door of the house slam shut that he hurried back into the master bedroom. He paced around for minutes, then finally sat down on the bed and stared at the empty space in front of him.

Jet was gone.

Most of him felt angry at her. She had gone ahead and done something dangerous without his permission. More precisely, something fatal. But it was not entirely her fault anyway, he had not done anything to stop her. The other part of him was angry at himself. How could he have let this happen? The assignment was officially completed, because everything was back where it belonged. But Jet was not where she belonged. She had been removed from Time. She had ceased to exist anymore.

Still beating himself up internally, Steel heard a gentle voice in his mind.

[So it is true that you're incompatible with anyone else, is it not?]

Steel did not look up, but let her sit down beside him on the bed.

"Why are you here, Sapphire?"

"Lending a hand, that's all," she smiled. "I've been told to stand by if anything goes wrong."

"I thought you were reassigned, with..."

"With Copper," she finished. "Well yes, but They are only doing trial pairings."

"Trial pairings?"

"Yes. Remember our previous assignment? Time can anticipate us now, Steel. It knows about us and the sort of moves we would make. Working together is now much more dangerous. That is why They are temporarily reassigning us to see if we are compatible with the others. But from what I can see has happened here, perhaps not."

At Steel's prolonged silence, she continued, "Do you miss Jet, Steel?"

"I don't like what she has done, but yes."

"Do you love her?"

Steel was speechless for another long moment. Finally he began, "Well, I..."

"It's alright," she politely interrupted, smiling affectionately, as she rose up from the bed. She stared straight ahead of her and worked her magic. The eerie glowing of the eyes, the resonating sound of the low hum, all seemed to happen too quickly. Before he even knew it, Jet was standing there in the bedroom with them.

"Sapphire."

"Jet."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Jet looked around the room, then finally asked, "What exactly happened here?"

"It wasn't very wise of you to disobey Steel," Sapphire smirked.

"Disobey? He didn't order me to do...or not to do anything. But Sapphire, how is the problem solved?

"Problem?"

"Yes, the problem. Of the wall, and the-"

"Is there?" Sapphire smiled, gesturing towards the wall. It remained entirely whole.

"But how?" Steel and Jet said simultaneously.

Sapphire could almost laugh at how clueless they both looked. Telepathically, she sent, [Come in.]

The couple entered the room shyly. Only Sapphire's presence kept them from exiting, because Jet and Steel looked menacing.

Amy decided to speak first. "I'm Amy. As you know I wasn't born on this planet, but this is where I belong. I came here to study and experience life as a human, and I found Jonah. I couldn't be more grateful to have him, and all I want right now is to be with him. I brought back the wall, and the maid, because Sapphire has decided to let me stay."

Steel shot Sapphire a look of sheer disapproval. She stepped forward to explain.

"Her staying on Earth doesn't cause any harm, not to the humans here, nor to Time. The only reason we have been sent is because of the accident with the wall and the maid. She is safe at home, by the way." She glanced at the happy couple, then continued, "And the only reason why that accident occurred, is because she had predicted our arrival. A causal loop."

"We are aware of that," Steel mumbled.

"And to prevent such causal loops and other accidents in the future, I have forbidden her to use any of her powers, which include clairvoyance and removing objects from Time. If she does use them again, we will be forced to send her back, isn't that right?" She cast a knowing glance at Amy, who quickly nodded. "We will be leaving."

Hurriedly, Jonah stepped towards Sapphire to look her in the eye. "Sapphire, I just want to say..."

She raised an eyebrow.

"...Thank you."

She smiled, then turned to her associates. Jet held Steel by the shoulder, just before they teleported.

/

As it was later in the night, the lane was even quieter, with nothing but the sound of singing crickets in the distance and Jet's voice in his head.

[So did I disappoint you, Higher Authority?]

Steel merely tolerated her arms wrapping around his shoulders. [I hope your question is rhetorical.]

Jet chuckled softly, then swiftly slid from his back to his chest.

[Keep in touch with me, Steel?]

Steel's lip curled, in relief. She wasn't expecting to work with him again.

[Maybe.]

Jet was enjoying herself. [What about another sort of touch?]

[Another sort of touch?]

[Yes. Another sort of touch.]

Steel finally understood what she was referring to.

[I might be able to endure it.]

Satisfied with the answer, Jet grinned, then gently pressed her lips onto his.

THE END


End file.
